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If the first three blogs didn’t make it clear I LOVE chicken. But I’m not trying to promote any stereotypes here and it’s not everyday chicken, sometimes you have to switch it up. All the fitness ‘Bro’s’ out there know that there’s only so much chicken, brown rice, and broccoli you can eat before you go insane. And even with all the flava coming out of my kitchen variety is still the spice of life. This dish will revolutionalize your meal prep Mondays and help you stay on track towards your fitness goals.

As well as being delicious, salmon is high in protein, which will aid in building and retaining muscle. It’s also a great source of omega-3 fatty acids which have been linked to improved cognitive function, reduced risk of heart disease and improved joint health, among many other benefits. So this is definitely a recipe to add to your meal prep rotation.

Ingredients (Serves 2):

2x100g Filets of Salmon (use a fish of your choice)

2 Limes

2 Cloves of Fresh Garlic

Black Pepper

All Purpose Seasoning

1 tsp Onion Powder

1 tsp Chilli Powder

2 Red Onions

1 Green Sweet Pepper

1 Red Sweet Pepper

1/2 a Scotch Bonnet Pepper

2 tbsp White Wine Vinegar

1/2 tsp Allspice (pimento)

2 Sweet Potatoes

Dried Thyme

1.5 tbsp Oil

Method:

Fish

Lightly score the surface of the fish and squeeze one of your limes over it.

Finely chop up your garlic

Rub your garlic, black pepper, onion powder, chilli powder and all-purpose seasoning into the fish and set this aside in the fridge to marinate for at least 1 hour.

Grab a frying pan and add a tiny bit of oil so the fish doesn’t stick.

Cook the fish on a medium heat for 4-6 minutes each side.

Sweet potato

Wash your sweet potatoes leaving the skin on

Cut them up into little bite-sized pieces

Boil them for 8-10 minutes

Take them out and place them on a baking tray, add 1 tbs of oil and mix them up so they are evenly covered.

Add thyme and all-purpose seasoning

Bake them at 180 degrees for 15-20 minutes or until they’re golden brown and crispy.

Macros

The weather has been hot and you will be too with this recipe! Insane macros and Intense flava. Some of you may know about curry goat aka food heaven (recipe coming soon) but I thought I’d start with something a little closer to home and easier to get your hands on.

*Disclaimer* this recipe is hotter than your #MCM and #WCW Instagram feeds combined so if you’re not about that life… Don’t add that scotch bonnet pepper!

Quick Food History! #StayWoke

One of the most fascinating things about Jamaica cuisine, beyond the role of Scotch Bonnet peppers and Jerk seasoning, is the love of curry. I’ve witnessed this in every Jamaican household I’ve been in from London to Kingston curry is king. But how did this happen? Simple answer… colonialism specifically British colonialism. Following the emancipation of the slaves in Jamaica in the mid 19th century, there remained a need for plantation labour, indentured servants were taken from other British colonies such as India, with them they brought a rich culture which is still evident in Jamaica to this day. Over time the fusion of Indian curry spice with spices such as Pimento (allspice) led to the creation of that distinctive Jamaican curry flavour that is about to be cooking in your kitchen.

It’s important to note that from the sources I have found timelines vary widely and it is possible, according to some sources that Indians were present in Jamaica before the abolition of slavery.

Excuse the delay, in typical Jamaican style this blog had to come a little late (this meal was so good I had to cook it twice). But this one is certainly worth the wait.

We are staying on the chicken theme this week… if you haven’t seen my Jerk Chicken recipe check it out Here.

A staple of my young life and now I’m about to share all of Momma Joy’s closest guarded cookery secrets with all of you, and this week we’re cooking up some browned stew chicken!

Before I share all my family secrets and end any chance my mother has of taking over from Ansley as TV’s superstar black chef, I need to check you’re all worthy of this type of knowledge. So to that end, here is my newest addition ‘Riddle of the Week’ *Thunderous Applause*. As a kid visiting Jamaica they always used to ask me some riddles. I’m useless at them but hopefully, you guys are smarter than me. Put you Answers in the comments section.

Riddle of the Week…

Why is every river rich?

Ingredients

675g Chicken Thigh Fillets (you can use a whole chicken or any other cut you like but you need to take the skin off and ain’t nobody got time for that)

1/2 A Lemon

2 Spring Onions

1 Small Red Onion

1 Medium Tomato

2 Cloves of Fresh Garlic

1 Large Carrot

45ml of Coconut Milk

Everyday Seasoning

1 Chicken Stock Cube

1 Scotch Bonnet Pepper (you can use any hot pepper you like)

25ml Oil (For Cooking)

Methods

Put your chicken in a bowl, squeeze your lemon and gently caress your chicken with the juice (sing to it for extra flava!)

Sprinkle your everyday seasoning all the chicken

Cut up your spring onion, red onion, garlic and scotch bonnet pepper, add this to the chicken, use your hand and massage the flava into the meat.

Let it soak and chill for 1-24 hours in the fridge (great things come to those that wait, the longer you let it soak the more flava you get!)

Heat a large pan on a medium heat and add your oil

Remove your chicken from the bowl shaking off the fresh seasoning and place it in your pan to cook until it’s brown on both sides (hold onto all your seasoning from the chicken)

Once your chicken is all ‘browned’ take it from the pan and place it on a plate

Take your bowl of seasoning and cook them for 2-3 minutes in the same pan.

Return your chicken to the pan

Cut up your tomato, thyme and carrot and add this to the pot.

Add enough water to cover the chicken and leave to simmer on a medium to low heat with an open pot.

Let it ‘cook down’ until your gravy is the desired thickness.

Serve and enjoy (Rice and peas recipe – coming soon)

This recipe makes four servings (if you’re serious about those gains anyway, adapt the servings as you like)

Macros

415 – Kcal
42g – Protein
22g – Fat
8g – Carbohydrates

Quick Jerk Chicken – “Healthier than KFC and way more finger-lickin’ “

Welcome to Fitness ‘n’ Flava where good food never has to taste dull. These blogs are for all my uni students struggling in the kitchen, for all the fitness bros and gals still eating chicken with no seasoning, and everyone who wants to chef up a storm, stay lean and make some serious gains in the gym.

I want to show you all some good food from Jamaica and around the world (with the help of some friends) that tastes great and keeps you on track towards your fitness goals.

The first recipe is going to be a favourite of mine, chicken is a staple of any fitness diet, high in protein, low in fat, and can taste great (if you know what you’re doing). Quick jerk chicken is a meal you can whip up with 15 minutes prep then let the grill or the oven do the rest. If you enjoy this let me know in the comments and, I’ll drop a full from scratch jerk chicken recipe in a few weeks time.

Quick Food History – #StayWoke

You always have to know some of the stories behind whats on your plate. Jerk is a cooking style conceived within the rich culture of Jamaica. The Maroons (Runaway slaves who successfully defended themselves against British soldiers, fighting and defeating them in the hilltops of Jamaica) are widely credited with inventing this technique using a combination of Arawak (The indigenous people of Jamaica) seasonings and African cooking techniques. In order to preserve and cook the wild meat, they hunted in order to survive. The seasonings and the cooking techniques have since evolved but the principles remain the same.

Recipe

*Disclaimer* Because this is the quick version and we are using a lot of premade seasonings we have a much shorter ingredients list. All my Jamaicans out there relax, full recipe coming soon.

I’ll try to be precise with the measurements but honestly, Jamaican food is about getting a feel for your food and intuitively knowing what works for you & your taste buds.

Ingredients:

1kg Chicken Breast

2 tbsp Jerk Paste

Dry Jerk Rub

1/2 Lemon

1/2 Sweet Pepper

1 Red Onion

1 Spring Onion

1 Chilli (should be a scotch bonnet pepper but they’re extra hot so be careful)

Methods:

1. Rub your chicken down with some lemon juice (massage it nicely, treat it how you’d treat that special person in your life).

2. Score your chicken lightly with a knife on both sides to allow it to cook quicker and allow the seasoning to reach deeper into the meat.

3. Add a generous amount of dry rub to your chicken allowing for a light coat all over the chicken.

4. Cut up all your fresh seasoning and add it to the chicken in a bowl.

5. Take your jerk paste add it to the bowl and use your hands to massage all the seasonings into the chicken (This chicken should be *Sings* Drippin in finesse).

6. Let it soak for 1-24 hours in the seasoning the more patient you are the more flavourful the chicken will be.

8. You can add a BBQ glaze or some honey for some sweetness, but be aware this adds some carbohydrates to the recipe so take count for that in your macro’s.

There you have it… some of the finest flavours of Jamaica in no time, right from your kitchen. You can have it as a little snack, serve it up with some rice, eat it in a sandwich the possibilities are endless!

Fitness ‘n’ Flava good food… without the hard labour (If anyone can think of a better tagline it would be much appreciated)